Oakland headed to Horizon League

Oakland University is the latest school to change conferences, announcing Tuesday that it will move from the Summit League to the Horizon League.

Oakland will officially join the Horizon League on July 1 and begin play this coming season. The Golden Grizzlies had been a member of the Summit League, formerly the Mid-Continent Conference, since 1999.

"Moving to the Horizon League allows us to associate and compete with institutions with outstanding academic profiles and values," Oakland athletic director Tracy Huth said. "They emphasize the experience of the student-athlete. It also gives us the opportunity to play the University of Detroit Mercy on a regular basis for some spirited metro Detroit competition."

After the defection of Loyola-Chicago last month to the Missouri Valley Conference, the Horizon League is back at nine teams. In addition to Oakland and Detroit Mercy, the other members are Cleveland State, Wisconsin-Green Bay, Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Illinois-Chicago, Valparaiso, Wright State and Youngstown State.

"As a conference driven by national prominence in men's basketball, Oakland further strengthens our league. Complementing their success in men's basketball is a broad-based sports program that will compete well," Horizon League commissioner Jonathan LeCrone said.

The nine-member Summit League is losing Oakland and Missouri-Kansas City after this season but picking up Denver and Nebraska-Omaha.

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